American tanker aircraft leave Bulgaria's Bezmer Air Base

The American tanker aircraft stationed at Bezmer Air Base near Yambol have left Bulgaria, Defense Minister Dimitar Stoyanov said. He did not specify whether their departure was temporary or permanent.

At the end of July, the Bulgarian National Assembly authorized the United States to deploy its tanker aircraft near Bezmer, while Prime Minister Rumen Radev assured that they would not take part in direct combat operations against Iran.

Minister of Defence: There is no direct threat to national security

“These days, we have been working in exceptionally close coordination with the US government, and we had advance information. Therefore, all our decisions were well-founded, based on accurate and clear information, rather than conspiracy theories. During the aircraft’s stay at Bezmer, not a single flight was conducted in a southerly direction,” the minister said.

President Iliana Iotova, for her part, said she saw no grounds for convening the Consultative Council for National Security and described the mission of the American aircraft as having been completed.

The aircraft’s departure comes just days after a report in the Financial Times claimed that Iranian forces were assessing options for strikes against US assets in Southeastern Europe, including in Bulgaria, which had approved the use of its Bezmer Air Base to refuel American aircraft.

Iran says stationing of U.S. aircraft in Bulgaria is a dangerous decision

Edited by Diana Tsankova